News Feed

#9N2014 News Roundup

The Guardian | Catalans vote in symbolic referendum on independence in defiance of Madrid
Voters hope that large turnout for non-binding referendum, following months of legal wrangling, would pave way for formal vote. […] “Despite the enormous impediments, we have been able to get out the ballot boxes and vote,” the Catalan leader, Artur Mas, said on Sunday, after months of tense legal wrangling between Madrid and Barcelona forced Catalan leaders to water down their plans for a formal referendum.

Business Insider Australia | What You Need To Know About Today’s Catalonia Independence Vote In SpainIn 2010, however, limits were put on how far Catalonia’s freedom could go. Spain’s Constitutional court ruled that a Catalan statute of autonomy, setting out the region’s status and powers, was not tantamount to nationhood. After that rejection, Catalan grass roots movements – up until then a minority — multiplied. In 2012, more than a million people attended a Catalan national day rally; the turnout led regional leader Artur Mas to put independence at the top of his political agenda.

LA Times | Catalonia holds banned election on secession from Spain
“If prosecutors are looking for someone to blame, it should be me,” Catalan Premier Artur Mas told reporters after casting his own ballot in Barcelona. “This is not the definitive vote, but it is very important,” he said, urging Madrid to “listen to the clamor from Catalonia.”